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Arshad Sami Khan
|death_date = |birth_place = |death_place = |placeofburial = |allegiance = |branch = Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Pakistan) Ministry of Culture (Pakistan) Commissioner General of Pakistan |serviceyears = |rank = |servicenumber = |unit = |commands = |battles =Indo-Pakistani War of 1965 |awards =Sitara-e-Jurat Sitara-i-Imtiaz (posthumous; 2012) |spouse = |relations =Naureen Sami Khan (wife) Adnan Sami (son) Junaid Sami (son) |laterwork =Diplomat, Government official, Author |website = }} Arshad Sami Khan (Urdu/ }}; January 8, 1942 – June 22, 2009) was a Pakistan Air Force fighter pilot and later an ambassador and Commissioner General of Pakistan. He was also the father of singer and composer Adnan Sami.Squadron Leader Arshad Sami Khan Retrieved 21 April 2011PM visits residence of Arshad Sami to condole his death Retrieved 21 April 2011Musician leaves for Pakistan Personal life Arshad Sami Khan was born in January 1942. He was of Pashtun origin;Adnan Sami: Fastest fingers first his grandfather Mahfooz Jan was the Governor of Herat in Afghanistan from 1921 until the revolution. Arshad was married to Naureen Sami Khan. Their son, Adnan, is a singer and composer based in Mumbai. His younger son's name is Junaid Sami Khan. Career in the Pakistan Air Force A national war veteran, Arshad Sami Khan was awarded the Sitara-i-Jurat, Pakistan's highest military medal of honour for bravery – for his actions in aerial combats during the Indo-Pakistani War of 1965. His name is honored in the following words at the Pakistan Air Force Museum in Karachi.PAF Museum Khan also had the distinction of serving three presidents of Pakistan as their Aide-de-camp (ADC); namely Presidents Ayub Khan, Yahya Khan and Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto. He went onto write a book about his experience as an Aide-de-camp entitled "Three Presidents and an Aide" which was released in March 2008.Three Presidents & an Aide Ambassador Arshad Sami Khan was appointed Pakistan’s first ambassador to Estonia in August 1993 along with serving as ambassador to three other Scandinavian countries simultaneously; Sweden, Denmark and Norway.Estonia and Pakistan Bilateral Relations Estonian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Retrieved 21 April 2011 He served as ambassador of Pakistan to ten other countries. He was chief of protocol to Presidents Ghulam Ishaq Khan, Wasim Sajjad and Farooq A. Leghari and also served as chief of protocol to Prime Ministers Benazir Bhutto, Ghulam Mustafa Jatoi and Nawaz Sharif. Khan went on to become the first Commissioner General of Pakistan (appointed by Benazir Bhutto) and then a federal secretary to the Government of Pakistan.Arshad Sami Khan — an ambassador of love and humanity On the occasion of Independence Day on the 14th of August 2012, the President of Pakistan posthumously conferred Khan the highest civilian award of Sitara-i-Imtiaz to honour his services to Pakistan. Awards * Sitara-e-Jurat * Sitara-i-Imtiaz (posthumous; 2012) * Best Fighter Pilot's Trophy * Military Medal of Honour from King Hussain of Jordan * Military Medal of Honour from the Shah of Iran * Military Medal of Honour from Turkey * Special Medal for Services to Humanity from the United Nations References Category:1942 births Category:2009 deaths Category:Ambassadors of Pakistan to Estonia Category:Deaths from pancreatic cancer Category:Pakistan Air Force officers Category:Pakistani diplomats Category:Pakistani government officials Category:Pashtun people Category:People from Islamabad Category:Recipients of Sitara-i-Imtiaz Category:Recipients of Sitara-e-Jurat